Thousands affected

Measures against traffic noise required

Cars and trucks sometimes cause extremely high noise levels.

(Bild: Lisa MathisMathis Fotografie GmbH, Krone KREATIV)

Noise, especially traffic noise, can have a massive negative impact on the health of those affected. The VCÖ is calling for measures to reduce this stress factor - also in Vorarlberg.

It would not only make sense to reduce road traffic for climate-related reasons. Because where there are emissions, there are also immissions - i.e. noise - not far away. As the Austrian Transport Club (VCÖ) explains on International Noise Day, road traffic is the number one source of noise in Vorarlberg.

The figures paint an impressive picture: more than 64,000 Vorarlberg residents live in an area where road traffic exceeds the threshold value of 55 decibels. At night, 69,000 people are exposed to road traffic noise of more than 45 decibels, the guideline value of the World Health Organization (WHO). For this noise mapping, the noise levels along 222 kilometers of provincial roads with more than three million vehicles per year and along the 92 kilometers of the A14 and S16 motorways were surveyed.

Incentives to change
Residents of municipal roads or less busy provincial roads were not included. The VCÖ emphasizes that "nothing needs to be invented" for noise protection, but only what already exists needs to be implemented: Traffic calming, incentives to switch to bicycles, low speed limits, more electric instead of diesel engines, for example. The use of noise radar devices - especially during the motorcycle season - would also be conceivable for the VCÖ. This is already a reality in other countries, such as France.